Impeccable sources close to the Gambia Bureau of Statistics (GBoS) have informed TAT of the postponement of Gambia’s 2023, Population and Housing Census slated for this month due to lack of funding.
Our sources confirm the postponement was approved by Cabinet, saying inadequate finances stalled the one-in-a-decade activity scheduled to start this month.
“I can confirm that 2023, Population and Housing Census, usually held every ten (10) years, has been postponed till November 2023. The exercise is supposed to begin this April, but following consultations with the relevant authorities, the Cabinet has approved the decision to postpone the exercise,” our source with knowledge of the exercise revealed.
He added: “The main reason for the postponement of the exercise is due largely to lack of funding; that has not been forthcoming as expected from the World Bank. Currently, mapping of the enumeration areas has not been completed because of lack of funds.”
According to him, Gambia Government has also struggled to provide the necessary funds to carry out the mapping exercise, which was eventually derailed, upending plans by GBoS to recruit more than 5000 data collectors across the regions.
The Alkamba Times contacted two senior officials of GBoS, Sheriff Njie and Sanna Manjang, who declined to speak.
Last year the country’s chief statistician Nyakassi Sanyang said in a statement that the population and housing census would be held in April.
A national census strives to provide the most reliable details about the country’s population, age demography, spatial distribution, and the socio-economic characteristics of households, as well as housing conditions.
According to a 2022 estimate, Gambia’s population stands at 2,413403 with a population density of 4 127 people per square kilometer.
